In early May, the Australian Research Council announced that a proposal from the University of Queensland to establish an industrial transformation research hub named ‘Advanced Solutions to Transform Tall Timber Buildings’ had been approved. The project collaborators include University of Canterbury (Christchurch), Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hyne & Son Pty Ltd, ARUP Pty Ltd, Lend Lease Development Pty Ltd, Scion, Queensland Fire and Emergency Services and Fitzpatrick & Partners Pty Ltd.
This announcement formalises the third industry transformation hub related to the forest and wood products industry. The University of Tasmania’s industrial transformation training centre for forest value and the Training Centre for Advanced Manufacturing of Prefabricated Housing (CAMPH) is led by the University of Melbourne. FWPA has a formal relationship with both of the existing Transformation Centres and will be liaising with the University Queensland researchers to identify areas of common interest that could be accelerated via FWPA investments into the new centre.
